I also found it helpful to have a toaster and my plug-in electric tea kettle to boil water. I don't have a toaster oven, but if you normally use one, that would be good too.

Also, if you were using any space in your kitchen as a desk, then you might want to put a small table in your dining room for your computer and office things.

After a day or two, I was missing extra surface space, so I ended up pushing the dining table against the wall as a prep and storage space, bringing the kitchen table from the garage and setting it up perpendicular to the pushed over dining table, and placing a sideboard cabinet and folding table in the adjacent foyer as another surface to put things on such as the coffee pot.

We just went through this, Mary, and I threw out so much after 45 years living in this kitchen. Now I'm in the process of moving stuff back in, STILL throwing out! Next is the pantry and there will be yet another through out party, along with bathroom stuff I haven't used for years. You're so right, amazing what we collect over the years.

Hey Mary_md7 - I remember your posts when I was talking to contractors because you were also considering Panda cabinets and I'm guessing from your name you are also in MD. What did you eventually decide? Our project was put on hold because of contractor issues so if you have any recommendations, please pass them along! Good luck with your demo and your reno!

SmallOldHouse, we are not getting Panda cabinets. After consulting with various people, including a friend in the business, we decided to go with Merillat. Not the builder grade lines, but the "Classic" line. We are getting the shaker style ("Portrait") in maple with a toffee stain.

Mary - I've got one of those too! My "I am not a packrat" husband has Rubbermaid totes of his spiral bound notebooks from undergrad. They are almost 15 years old and he has since added his grad school notebooks. Nobody (himself included) can even read his writing. I feel your pain. :)

Mary - Good luck - I didn't find it as bad as most described. I had my DeLonghi Convection Oven and an induction burner and access to a MW most of the time.
I had one plate, bowl, glass and silver for DH and myself and just washed the dishes in the laundry sink with a wash tub.
I did use some paper but not as much as I thought I would use.
I also pulled out my crock pot to make a meal once but that was a mess to clean compared to the induction burner and little oven.

I am still cleaning my 2" horizontal aluminum shades (I forget what you call them) from all the construction dust and hardwood floor dust. I had a lot of demo/etc. and the entire first floor sanded... so I may have had more dust than most kitchen-only remodels.

I wish I would have realized this and moved them into a room that is closed off during construction. They are quite long and very difficult to clean.

I would also turn off HVAC during the demo and any other messy parts, if possible.

Mary-if you have an electric fry pan keep it out. You can use it for many things. I was able to make a simple baked pasta dish, boiled water for the pasta, drain and set to the side, fry some ground meat or sausage, layer pasta, meat, mozzerella cheese in fry pan and heat until cheese is bubbly. We got tired of things on the grill and the pasta was a nice change. I had only really used an electric fry pan camping before our reno, but from camping there were a lot of things I knew how to make in it. Make sure to keep the box with the kitchen implements handy. You never know what you might need; ie, the corkscrew ; ) Try to enjoy the transformation and take lots of before and during pictures. Good luck!

Hi Mary - looks like I'm on the same demo schedule as you - I also start Tues - Yay!!! Kitchen is packed. I'll clean the fridge tomorrow (it's going to my sister). I have another in the basement that I'll use in the interim. I'm so excited to finally get started. Hopefully there will be major progress before the holidays, but I'm keeping an open mind. Good luck to you!!!

I found my George Forman grill invaluable for cooking;; with a toaster oven, microwave, and casserole style crockpot we have managed just fine and really have eaten out very little. We do tend to eat simply, though. Pasta got cooked by a combination of MW and crockpot.

I have even baked, just making half recipes to fit into the toaster oven.

DD is the only coffee drinker, so she just set up the pot on a small table in her bedroom.

Ellen1234 raised a very good warning, that I wish I had thought of. At least, buy cheap light plastic dropcloths and painter's tape, and cover your blinds/drapes/upholstered furniture during any demolition and sanding. The amount of dust raised is astonishing, and it seems that the care taken to control it can really vary from crew to crew (for me, the demolition and drywall was a dust disaster (even though the drywaller taped off the kitchen), while the floor sanding was pretty painless). Even stuff in the basement got covered in dust.

A small inexpensive shop vac is useful for clean-up, with a drywall filter in it -- so you won't risk damaging your good vacuum.